Paper-clip.



B. L. MINK.

PAPER CLIP.

APPLICAHDN HLED SEPLSO. 19W.

Patented Mar. 25,1919.

1: 5 P gan 202 [Vi/2A1 BENJAMIN L. MINK, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

PAPER-CLIP.

Specification 01' Letters Patent.

latentedilar. 25, 1919.

Application filed September 30, 1918. Serial No. 256,230.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN L. Mrnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful lm n'ovements in Paper Clips, of which the following is a s[';ecifieation.

My invention relates to paper clips made from elastic wire, and has for its ohiect to construct the clip in such manner that two OPPOSilLG clamping members, each having considerable lateral dimensions, shall lie flat against the faces of the sheets of paper to which the clip is applied. whelln-r the mass of papers he thick or thin.

in the arsonzpanylnp drawings l igure l.

is an edge View, Fig. 2 is a. side view, and Fig. 3 is an end view of a (lip formed so cording to my imontion. Fig. -l is an end View of the clip applied to and uniting; a mass of papers.

The clip is made from rlastir or spring wire and is of a general style and form in common use. it has two opposite clamping n'lemhers 1 and il. united hy a central llCIHl or loop 4, adapted to slraihlh the edge of a mass of papers A, to which the clip may he applied. The clamping nuunhrr consists of two legs 5 and H united h}; :1 loop 7. the leg 5 being a ronnlwling leg llttVl'UPll the loops 4 and 7. and the leg (I being: Free at one end. The other clumping znvnilwr 3 won sists of two legs H and 9 united hr 2: loop 10. the lep, 9 being a connecting 10;: and 9 a free leg.

I am well aware that paper (-lips having the features thus far dusrriln-dr and when the several parts lllltll. li "llll three loops and the four legs lie in a ronunon plane. are well known and in common use. characteristic of such well known form of clip is that the two opposite clamping nwmlnirs.

when the clip is applied to a. mass of papers,

do not lie flat against and parallel withthe opposite faces of the paper sheets, hut instead the legs of the clamping nnnnhers spring away, to a greater or less extent, from the faces of the sheets against which they are supposed to bear, this being especially noticeable when the clip is applied to a mass of considerable thickness, and near the loops 7' and 10. An incident to the use of the said common form of clip is that it heroines distorted in use, especially when applied to a thick mass of papers, the central straddling loops of lhe spirally roiled clip last loop 4 becoming twisted in the no! of applying it to the papers, with the result that a (fill), after being once used, is of a Ilill'vrunl shape from that it had originally. the rlannr ing members being bent our of tho 'ulnlnun plane of the clip, but the two legs of varh clamping member being still Hlll),\'l2lllll2lll parallel with each other.

Another form of paper clip is made of a short erlindrical svrtion of coiled wire, the comfolutions oi whirh lie close together and side by side. Considering: such form of clip it may he assumed that a certain are of the central convolution thereof. the upper for instance, (the (lip being held opposite the eye so that vision can he through the opening; inclosed by thieonvolutions),lies in a plane (as it (loos. however. only approximainly) whirh for purposes of (losrripl'ioi'i i shall for! (he ('onlral plane of the clip. The conrelutions on either side of this rrnliral one are ronnvuled thereto by loops. whirl: at the oppositiside of the elip--the lower sidvlilsulislanlially parallel to each other, at some distant-o aparl, and inclined lo the central plane of the clip. As the con vohltions progress. they living: regular. each snu'rvssive part is further out to one side of the central plane oi lhu clip lhan mu'h pro (oiling part, this holding good to the ends ol the rlip, whatev r number of ronvolulions there may he.

This r-lip that l have inrrnlml possesses some of the harai-lvristiwv o1" holh the forms of clips that l ha \0 rel'rrrml lo. As stated. in general (-onstrlu-lion it is like tlu' l'orln first mentioned and has all of the a( l\"untagcs thoreol' without any 01' its undi-siralilc rharlflfli'ilrll h' that have l)ltll pointed out. To secure the :ulrantagjrs incident lo my invention I lwisl the wire of which the rlip is formed. so that the loops 7 and 10, corresponding in a general way with the lower ahove referred lo, not only lie substantially parallel with earh other but are also close together; and so that the free legs of the clamping; memhers (l and 9. instead of receding from the central plane of the clip the plane in which lies the central loop 4--- incline toward that plane. that is inwardly. In other words the clip, forn'ied of a. sort of elongated or oblong convolution of wire, has the portions thereof that progress from the loop 41 to first reeede from that plane and then approach that plane. Since it is formed of convoluted wire, the coils of which are bent in an irregular manner, in this respect it differs from the second form of clip referred to, as well as from the first form.

The clip is shaped so that the loops 7 and 10 are in substantially parallel, though not coincident, planes, and are close together. The free legs of the two clamping members incline inwardly from their connected to their free ends. The central loop 4 is pref erably so disposed that when the clip is applied ton mass of papers it crosses the edge of the pa per niass diagomilly, as represented in Fig 4, without necessitating distortion and bending of the clip in the act of applying it, but a mere springing or yielding of its elastic parts. This disposition of the middle loop, produced by properly twisting the wire of which the clip is formed, while advantageous, is not essential to my invention, as some of the advantages incident thereto are retaineth even if the middle, straddling loop of the clip as it is manni'actured lies parallel with the loops 7 and It). The outer ends of the free legs are the 7 parts of the clip most easily deflected, and hence it is that when they incline inwardly as described they readily yield as the clip is applied when in use, and come into ap- PI'UXllllil it parallelism with the legs to which they are united. by the loops 7 and 10. When the middle loop -l is twisted as shown, the legs 5 and 8 are inclined from their ends that are united with the loop 4 inwardl with the result that they Will lie closey against the opposite; faces of the sheets to w iichtheclip 15 applied. The middle loop 4 inclines in one direction, While the loops 7 and 10 incline in different directions crossing the plane of'the middle loop, represented in Fig. 3.

In using a, clip such as I have invented and herein descrlbed, not only do its opposite. clamping parts lie more nearly parallel with the sheets to which the clip is applied than do the corresponding elements of a clip all the parts of which lie in a common plane, hat the clip is less distorted in use than is said other f rm, and hence it may he used many times hefore becoming so out of shape that it is necessary to discard it.

What I claim is:

Apaper clip of oblong shape formed of wire convoluted to produce two clamping members united by a central loop that is located at one end of the clip, each clamping member having two legs united by a 100), which latter loops are at the end of the clip opposite the central loop, characterized by having the central loop located in a plane inclined in one direction and the loops of the clamping members at the opposite end of the clip located in planes inclined in the other direction. which latter planes are approximately parallel, the free legs o'feach clamping member being inclined from the loops to which they are respectively joined toward the plane in which is located the central loop.

BENJAMIN L. MINK. 

